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February 1703 (7)
= La Gloire du Roi - February 1703 = Weather this month *No freezing. *Becalmed in the Mediterranean, and the Black Sea. *Heavy rainfall in the East Indies. *Storms in the far south and Northern Europe. Events Of Importte Pertaining To Recent Matters Warsaw *The Chancellor’s Office proposed to the Sejm of Poland that Spanish merchants enjoy a reduced tariff rate of 5%, half the standard rate, as a thank you to their government for sending a generous gift of grain to stave off the worst of the famine last winter. In the face of this information the members did not feel able to vote against, and so the measure was passed and has been enacted in law. This sitting of the Sejm was then dismissed. Poona *Prince Rajaram of the Maharatas has visited the Temple of Ganesh in Poona, riding there under an umbrella aboard a painted elephant adorned with richly presented trappings. At the temple His Highness gave generously to the poor. Lisbon *The Marquis das Minas has emphasised that Portugal is not interested in selling off parts of her empire, in spite of the desire of her neighbours ‘to see this kingdom destroyed by being cut into tiny pieces to make it easier to swallow up’. He stated that the Portuguese economy was not in crisis, and the nobility remained loyal subjects of King Pedro. Stuttgart *Following one of his constitutional walks Baron Freizack called in on Duke Eberhard of Wurtemburg and put in a request that he grant a private audience to the Prince of Bavaria sometime during the later half of April, when His Grace intends to travel back from Paris? Singapore *As the island of Singapore is now under Russian rule the Sultan of Johore has shifted his capital to the Riau (or Riouw) islands to the south. This could cause problems for the new governor of Singapore, Ukraintsev, who is supposed to be retaining his old role as ambassador to the Johori court but on account of his new commitments is unable to move to the new location. Macao *The officers and men of the Azbedo Regiment have boarded a merchantmen with their arms and standards, and are being taken to Hooghly in India by prior arrangement with the Chinese who have paid for this to happen. Kassel *Landgraf Charles of Hesse-Kassel cautiously agreed to allow Lady Ursula to be courted by Prince Frederick Augustus of Saxony, but added that this did not mean he agreed to the two marrying. Charles is rumoured to be concerned that madness might run in the Saxon prince’s family (or this may just be one of those scurrilous rumours which afflict so many courts in these degenerate days!). As matters would have it, Prince Frederick returned to his beloved court of Dresden so delaying any courtship with the lady Ursula, although before leaving Kassel he did ask Landgraf Charles whether he would be amenable to sending Ursula to Dresden to allow her to see 'this beautiful city and worship at my side in the new cathedral'? Mainz *The Prince of Pfalz has been asked to reconvene the Reichstag by Graf von Schonborn in order to ratify the appointment of four reichsmarshals and a reichsadmiral, and to discuss whether Baden, Lorraine and Mainz should be ceded from the Holy Roman Empire to France. Schonborn then left the Court of Pfalz. West Texas *Spanish settlers trying to establish themselves in West Texas have suffered from a series of raids by Navaho Indians which killed over 200 of them. The Hermandad Militia is not yet properly established amongst them, making the settlers vulnerable to such hostiles. Quebec *On stepping ashore at Quebec, the Viceroy of the Five Dominions of the French Colonial Empire, le Duc de Bourgoyne, delivered this speech: “Ladies and gentlemen, I see before me the opportunity for each and everyone here, including myself, to make Canada, and Quebec in particular, rich and powerful contributors to the glory of King Louis. Canada has the potential to provide wood in such quantities and of such quality as to not only maintain the French Navy, but also to keep it the envy of the world. France shall benefit from the vast untapped forests of this rich and wonderful land. Wood shall be the staple export of Canada and the timber shall bring investment and immigration to eastern Canada. It will foster economic development and transform the regional environment far more radically than the earlier exploitation of fish and fur. It will encourage the building of towns and villages, the opening of roads, and exploration. However, fish and fur shall still form important exports as the demand for timber will by the nature of economics rise and fall. Our exports shall take many forms. Large masts, cut for the French Royal Navy from the finest trees of the mixed forest that sweeps through the Maritimes and the St. Lawrence Valley, shall be of major use. Shingles, barrel staves, box shooks shall also be exported, but sawn lumber and square timber will form the major wood staples. Lumber, the product of sawmills will be prepared mostly as ‘deals’ (rough pieces of wood at least 12´ long, 7´ wide and 2½´ thick), planks and boards. Also to be exported will be square timber, wood hewn square with axes. This will be shipped to France where it can be re-sawn. The naval mast is limited by its specialised and high quality requirement. The vast resources of oak and pine shall enable France to keep her fleets well supplied around the world. The square timber industry will be developed rapidly to meet the enormous demand from France should she need to go to war, to provide the navy with a constant and plentiful supply of good quality wood.” Coimbra *A small riot has occurred in Coimbra which the Portuguese authorities were unable to deal with initially, although the following morning dragoons arrived and restored good order. Dresden *On returning to his court and seeing the new cathedral, the Prince of Saxony began to have some deep thoughts about theology. He met with some leading Lutheran clergymen and suggested a radical theory to them: "Perhaps Jesus Christ did not die for our sins so we could be clean, but actually so we could realise that sin was an affront before God..." The theologians were horrified! They forcefully interrupted, each one speaking at the same time trying to counter this heresy, but the general point they made was that the Law of God, his unattainble holy standards, was what made clear to mankind us that our sins were an affront before God, what these sins are and showed that on our own we can never be good enough in His eyes, while the Lord's penal substitutionary atonment for us on the cross, the Gospel, the good news, was what saved the one who has faith by what Christ has done for us to atone for our sinful nature. To say that Christ did not die for our sins, they explained none too gently, put one outside of Christianity! They pressed their prince hard on this, fearing for his soul; the Law condemns and points out our sin and leads to repentence, the Gospel grants us forgiveness from sin; the Law is what we do, the Gospel is what God has done for us through Christ, 'and that's the Gospel truth,' they then asserted! Prince Augustus then continued the line of thought he had been formulating in his head. “But what if God, by allowing His Son to die was using Him as the ultimate example of what would happen to all people if they did not refrain from sin. And also, you cannot be saved through the grace of God, just by having faith in Him. Faith alone will not save the sinner, leading a good life whether you have faith or not is surely the truest way to God.” The theologians just stared at him, speechless. One sighed deeply, muttering, ‘This could take a while,’ and they opened their Holy Bibles... “We begin. Faith means trusting in God, if you don't trust Him you can't be saved. Think you can save yourself by being good? Good luck with that! Hebrews 11:6 declares: 'without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.' " Another theologian chimed in. "1 Corinthians 15:3, 'Christ died for OUR sins in accordance with the Scriptures, He was buried, He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.' ” “Ephesians 2, and I quote: 'And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - BY GRACE YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. FOR BY GRACE YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED THROUGH FAITH. AND THIS IS NOT YOUR OWN DOING; IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD, NOT A RESULT OF WORKS, SO THAT NO ONE MAY BOAST.” He spoke these words while shaking slightly, raising his voice at end to emphasise the point! Then he added, "Grace means God's undeserved favour; a gift, you don't earn a gift by good works, you receive it like you would a gift at Christmas, it's freely given." "Romans 10:9 says, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved." "We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, through Christ alone, or we are not saved at all, although it is true that saving faith is never alone - works follow in such trust’s wake. Scandalous isn't it? Good news - Gospel - in fact, but unregenerate man insists he must earn his salvation himself and refuses to accept the gift Jesus paid. You see there is no such thing as a good person, we all fall short of the glory of God and can't earn anything with Him!" They then closed their Bibles, collectively leaned back, fixing Prince Frederick Augustus with their eyes and collectively glaring at him, hoping no doubt to see some sign of repentence so he may receive God's forgiveness so freely offered! Augustus smiled broadly. "I hope my musings help to move the Church forward in Saxony!" The theologians just looked at each other and shook their heads in exasperation! His Grace then announced he was constructing a new Lutheran cathedral in Chemnitz, and said he was considering sending missionaries abroad to spread the faith. The Lutheran clergymen didn't quite know what to make of this, and asked if the missionaries would be Lutheran or Roman Catholic, because his theology is more Catholic than Lutheran they argue, although one muttered 'even Rome isn't that radically heretical!' However, they are painfully aware that their Saxon prince, who have traditionally been champions of the Reformation, has since the 1690's been a Roman Catholic himself. They just wish he would convert back to Lutheranism - or failing that, never mention this inconvenient fact relating to his religion again! *Prince Augustus has announced the commencement of a French season at the Saxon Court where everything French is deemed to be highly fashionable. This development would have delighted French merchants had they seen an increase in demand for their goods, but with the Lutheran-Catholic controversy widely reported and dominating Saxons' conversation, his Lutheran subjects showed little enthusiasm to adopt Catholic France's fashions at the moment! Valetta *Himself being a Knight of Devotion of the Knights of Malta, the Russian general Boris Sheremetev made his way to Valetta in order to hopefully meet the Grandmaster of that order. He is therefore awaiting an invite to the Grandmaster's palace. Sheremetev has been here before, having made the trip on behalf of the Tsar in the late 1690's. Constantinople *Prince Mihail of Moldavia has boarded his yacht Molda with the intention of leaving Constantinople in order to return to his homeland. He was thwarted in this on account of a lack of winds by which the ship could sail in these waters, much to His Highness's great frustration! Troubles still continue to afflict this visit. Four of his sailors formed a shore party to try and recruit more sailors in the city, but were accosted by an 'Eye of the Vizier' guardian of the law who instructed some Janissaries to execute the Moldavians immediately for this! The death penalty is the mandatory penalty for trying to recruit, and so the executions took place straight away. Shanghai *Lord Yea said he is pleased with the performance of the White Banner Army at Macao, and along with General Wang Gui welcomed the soldiers back as they took up duties in Shanghai guarding Yu Yuan Palace. Special provision was made to care for these returning heroes to allow them to rest and recuperate after their long voyage and successful campaign. *Having invited Sir Ian Crane to tea, Lord Yea asked him what had become of his request for dredgers? Sir Ian admitted to not being certain on the issue, but thinks it is not practical to send any from England since the distances involved are so great that it is probable the dredgers would be lost at sea in rough water while traversing the many seas and oceans. Berlin *Prince Frederick of Prussia has commended Baron Karl von Hardenburg for his actions, and announced that he accepts the funds and apology from Austria as a gesture of goodwill which puts 'the issue of the errant Herr Bach firmly behind us.' Greatly relieved, Count von Salzburg gladly handed over 50,000 Talers. *The General Directory is urging Prince Frederick IV to accept the Imperial office of Reichsmarshall of the Northern & Western Circles in order to ensure the stability of the Empire from external attack. *Frederick IV has attended a concert at the Berliner Dom where the pipe organ was put through its paces by Kappelmeister George Frideric Handel accompanied by the Lutheran cathedral's choir which sang under the guidance of Benjamin Schmolck. El Escorial *A masked ball has been staged at the Spanish royal court to celebrate St. Valentine's Day. A certain golden eagle was observed to stay very close to a pregnant swan who only took part in a couple fo slow dances, but six attendants to the swan, also wearing bird masks, proverbially lit up the ballroom. The prize for the Queen of Love and Beauty was awarded to the best dancer was shared between Isabella de Calvo (a humming bird) and Elizabeth Grimaldi (a kingfisher, and neice of the Grand Admiral), both of whom are ladies in waiting to Her Majesty the Queen. Grand Admiral Grimaldi unveiled a painting by court painter Vermeyan of the ship San Marco in a typhoon. He also unveiled plans for the Santa Sofia, the new Spanish flagship claimed to be the largest and most powerful ship of war in the world! This may or may not be true but clearly the Spanish Santa Sofia class outclasses anything in the Portuguese fleet (or it is being saved at El Escorial!). Grimaldi boasted that the Spanish Navy is not impressed by threats from 'the Butcher of Lisbon', the Marquis das Minas. "Our opinion, shared with the world, is that Das Minas may be good at beating up women and starving children but how would he do against men and Toledo steel?" Delhi *Persian diplomat Riza Kuli was seen to take to one side the Moghul's Vizier of Foreign Affairs, Saqlain Mushtaq, to whom he spoke at some length in a low voice in an attempt to avoid being overheard. Genoa *Genoese families have been frankly shocked to find that Spanish wine they have been buying tastes, well, absolutely revolting! Versailles *A ball has been held at Versailles to commemorate improvements in Franco- Austrian relations. At this event King Louis XIV of France decorated the following ambassadors: Herr Franz Kripp of Saxony, Yuri Ushakov of Russia, Herr Hadposki of Poland, Prince Tha of Burma, are all awarded knighthoods as chevaliers d'Arts Diplomatique. One of the guests was GeneralFeldMarshall Johann Baptiste Count d’Arco of the Bavarian Electoral Army. He has made no secret of the fact that he is looking for a wife at the court of Versailles, and seems to be indicating that he would appreciate King Louis’ recommendation as ‘since his youth His Majesty has had a keen eye for ladies.’ *The earthly remains of the late Philippe II, Duc de Orleans have been cremated in Russia and the ashes sent to the French court. This has been controversial, especially in Russia where cremation is not permitted by the Orthodox Church, and while the Roman Catholic Church does not forbid it, cremation is certainly unusual except in emergencies. Vienna *Austrian courtiers have made a point to visit the French trading office in Vienna to examine samples of goods on offer. They also spent time trying to track down the Spanish equivalent, but couldn't find one in the city! *From the Hofburg the Emperor Leopold issued an Imperial statement brought on by Frederick Augustus seeking to be the future ruler of Hesse- Kassel and 'the risk of that state ceding from the Empire as well'. The statement declared that a peace and non-aggression treaty has been signed with France, that four reichsmarshalls are being appointed including Prince Maximilian of Bavaria, and that Saxony does not return to the Empire by April 1703, the Prince of Bavaria will be appointed as its governor until Prince Augustus recognises the authority of the Empire. Imperial forces will, if necessary, use force after April 1703 to bring Saxony back into the Empire. Mangalore *The Maharatans have taken over the Portuguese colony of Mangalore. Dunkirk *Hugo Le Gros, the Spanish governor of Dunkirk, has ordered the port to be closed to Jacobite shipping and ordered soldiers of the Brussels Regiment to seize any Jacobite cruisers, prizes or assets here that they find. In the event the soldiers found nothing, which didn't surprise Le Gros who assumed the Jacobites wouldn't be so stupid as to use Dunkirk without a licence from Charles, Duke of Flanders, but he thought it wise to check anyway. Spanish and Spanish Netherlands diplomats at The Hague and in London have promised the Dutch and English governments respectively that if piracy has been committed from Flanders' ports Countess Mary will compensate merchants who suffer loss. Paris *Prince Max of Bavaria quit Versailles in order to visit King James II at his palace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in Paris. His Grace was warmly received by the monarch, who in turn was invited to travel to Munich to visit Maximillian's court at Nymphenburg Palace as his guest. The Prince of Bavaria has requested a private audience with the Jacobite King? Gabriel del Montosa, Countess of Hainault also arrived with the intention of gaining entry into Saint-Germain-en-Laye, but to her immense fury she was told she would not be allowed in. Stockholm *Count Lewenhaupt has expressed his complete trust in the Swedish method of war, which he described as being ‘particularly suited to an offensive war and far superior to those of any other nation of our time’. He pointed out that Prussia and Saxony had realised this and backed away from conflict with the superior Swedish royal army just in time to avert their own disaster. Moscow *In a public regimental ceremony a new elite Znat regiment paraded in Kremlin Square with other Army regiments forming a guard of honour surrounding the square. The Znat troopers were wearing light blue uniforms, as chosen by the Golitsyn family. The Russian chancellor Boris Golitsyn was mounted upon a horse alongside the new commander of the regiment, Colonel Heideken, in front of the cavalry regiment. The Tsar presented to them the new regimental colours, and officially commanded their inclusion into the Russian Army, after which the Great Patriarch of Russia blessed this, the 2nd Boyar Znat Regiment. Tsar Peter used the occasion to make a public announcement: “For the last couple of years it has been clear that our nation needs access to the European markets, both via the Baltic and Black Sea if it is to continue its growth. In the North this has resulted in tension with our neighbours Sweden, and I have made no secret of my willingness to go to war for the benefit of our nation. Twice I have stalled direct action to try and reach a diplomatic solution, but the current administration in Stockholm try to take us for fools. Stockholm claims that there are no outstanding letters from Russia. I refer Stockholm to the Treaty THEY offered, returned signed by Russia in September of last year to which we have had no response. Moscow is the party that has NOT received any response. No longer will the future of Russia be put on hold. Today, WAR IS DECLARED ON SWEDEN. Our diplomatic position was purely for access to the Baltic, via a defined point. Now, with Russian lives needing to be sacrificed we will continue this war until I am happy that our goals are achieved and Sweden no longer poses a threat as a neighbour… TO RUSSIA AND GLORY!” The square resounded to the cheers of the assembled soldiers. A glorious war has begun in which names may be made! *The Tsar accompanied by Patriarch Stefan has visited the Church of the Twelve Apostles to see the new Prime Patriarch Athanasius, who was delighted to greet his visitors. “Your Holiness, this is a great day for our faith,” said Tsar Peter, “and I welcome your appointment. While we must not overlook a single soul in our faith, it is clear that the two largest populations exist in Russia and Greece. Our work has given you and the Holy Synod a mandate to bring peace and unity to the people. The faith now looks to you, and the three other great patriarchs for strong leadership, and Russia wishes you a long and successful reign as the first ever Prime Patriarch. The Russian Crown will do all in its power to support your work.” “I am touched by your support and confidence in me,” replied Athanasius, who then announced a total ban on cremations with the Orthodox Church from this point on. Las Palmas *Acting Archbishop Ignacio de Castille at high mass in the refurbished but still scarred Cathedral of Santa Anna explained with relish the fate awaiting the pirates who attacked the town: How each will have troops of devils vying to inflict more pain on their sinner than the others. That the pirates will watch their colleagues’ torments whilst they are being beaten. Many in the congregation took this to mean they will stand in a circle. Those pirates who undertook sexual acts will have their genitalia shrunken and become barren. Those who stole will have molten gold poured down their throats; those who commanded will forever clean out the latrine of the terminally incontinent. In short they will rot in Hell! Bishop Ignacio then tells his flock – "but just as eternal damnation awaits these pirates it awaits you who allowed this evil act to happen! To repair this sin you must prepare, you must be watchful and ready to act whether for the Second Coming of the Lord or your mortal enemies! Go home today and consider what you will contribute when the Port Admiral and the Military Governor call on you. I demand that they act to protect this cathedral, the Church in Africa and our brothers and sisters in Christ!" In the congregation Colonel Juan Modesto, Military Governor of the Canary Isles seemed transported by this sermon and Rafael del Rigo the port admiral nodded firmly. After mass both asked for a private audience with the acting archbishop, and this was allowed... People being Much Admired by the Best in Société *The Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I *King Louis Xiv Of France, The Sun King *Lord Yea Of The Shantung Province Of The Heavenly Celestial Manchu Empire *Cardinal Portocarrero Of The Council Of State, Bishop Of Toledo, King Of Spain’S Treasurer *Roger Martel Of The Honourable West India Company, Spain’S Viceroy Of Africa *Mihail Racovita, Hospdar Prince Of Moldavia *King Thalun Toungoo Of Burma *Captain Edward Teach, ‘Blackbeard’ Shipping Lists: Being a Reporte on Knowne Shipping Movements *Portugal's India Fleet has set sail from Capetown. *The 1st French Colonial Squadron has arrived at Fort-de-France, Martinique. *The Dutch El Mina Squadron has arrived at El Mina. *With the thinning of the ice sheet in the Baltic the French Orleans Escort Fleet set sail from Konigsberg and made its way to Rochefort. *The Russian ships of war at Copenhagen have set sail under Apraxin's flag for the island of Langeland, anchoring off the town of Rudkobing. Lloyds Lists: Being a Reporte on Knowne Shipping Losses from Causes Unknowne or Knowne *None. Ambassadorial Appointments *None. Trade Missions Opened *By Moldavia in Paris. Automatically parsed by LGDRParser v1.0 Category:Game 7